French court quashes fine given to Muslim woman for wearing a veil while driving

By Daily Mail Reporter
Updated:


  • Ruling that niqab 'does not present a danger'

A French court has annulled a fine imposed on a Muslim woman for wearing an Islamic veil while driving.

Sandrine Mouleres was fined £18 in April by police in the western city of Nantes, after they had deemed that the veil she was wearing was restricting her vision.

Her lawyer hailed the court's decision to quash the fine yesterday, saying the niqab - which shows only the eyes - did not present a danger.

U-turn: Sandrine Mouleres, pictured with her husband, Lies Hebbadj, was fined in April for driving while wearing her veil - but a Nantes court has now ruled in her favour

U-turn: Sandrine Mouleres, pictured with her husband, Lies Hebbadj, was fined in April for driving while wearing her veil - but a Nantes court has now ruled in her favour

However, a public ban on face-covering veils comes into force in France next year.

Those in support of the ban say it will defend French values but critics say it could ignite anti-Muslim feeling in France, where Islam is the second religion.

Women who disregard the ban face fines of 150 euros (£127), with heavier penalties for those found guilty of forcing women to wear a veil.

Though the fine was small, the case of Mrs Mouleres attracted great public interest and gained symbolic importance amid the impassioned debate over banning face veils.

Her lawyer, Jean-Michel Pollono, said the fine constituted a breach of his client's human rights.

Lies Hebbadj, companion of Sandrine Mouleres, meets journalists as he takes his Argentinian mastiff for a walk near his home in Reze, Francef

Lies Hebbadj, companion of Sandrine Mouleres, meets journalists as he takes his Argentinian mastiff for a walk near his home in Reze, Francef

He argued the niqab moved with the head and thus was not a hindrance to drivers.

'We are in a free country, and as a result, everything that isn't forbidden is allowed,' he said outside court yesterday.

'We can now drive with a niqab.'

France has Europe's largest Muslim minority population, estimated at about five million.

The French interior ministry estimates that only about 1,900 women wear full veils in the country.

There are several types of headscarves and veils for Muslim women - those that cover the face being the niqab and the burka.

In France, the niqab is the version most commonly worn.

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